Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive show news, updates, and more!
Ariana Grande Embodies Celine Dion in SNL's Hysterical UFC Promo Parody
The October 12 Host's impression nailed the icon's voice and gestures in the parody of Dion's real Sunday Night Football ad.
It's no secret that Ariana Grande is a master impressionist, with a talent for impersonating fellow pop stars like Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, and Miley Cyrus. She shared all of those once again during her October 12 Saturday Night Live episode — but the Wicked actress managed to plumb new depths when it came to her Celine Dion in a hilarious commercial parody. The sketch is a nearly shot-for-shot recreation of Dion's real October 2024 ad spot for NFL's Sunday Night Football (watch it here).
SNL's "Celine Dion Sports Promo" sketch asked the question: What if the woman known for one of the most heartrending movie soundtracks in history recorded an anthem for the Ultimate Fighting Championship?
Grande's turn as Dion is the closest we'll come to finding out, and she absolutely nailed it. While she's previously been able to conjure her musical contemporaries' vocals in moments like The Tonight Show's "Wheel of Musical Impression" and her own 2016 SNL episode (long live Chloe the Tidal Intern), here, Grande doesn't capture Dion's voice, but her gestures as well.
RELATED: Ariana Grande Performed an "Espresso" Song Parody in SNL's Bridesmaid Speech Sketch
Ariana Grande sings "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" as Celine Dion in SNL's UFC Promo
At the top of the promo, Grande's Dion explains how she recently appeared in an a very sincere promo for Sunday Night Football. "Okay? But football isn't the only sport that connects us to our past, no?" she tells the camera. "There is another sport whose timeless emotions ignite the bittersweet memories that live inside my soul."
That sport is UFC fighting.
After a rallying "Shall we go for it," Grande launches into a gorgeous rendition of Dion's 1996 hit "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" as the icon herself. But her reworked version is much, much more violent.
"There was breaking of bones, and there were knees to the balls," she croons, before painting some poignant word pictures about UFC archetypes.
"Dozens of commentators, all bald and in the shiniest of shirts," she narrates, over footage of real UFC commentators that include Joe Rogan.
"When I hit you here like this, and when you choke me like that / When you elbow me in the t-t, it's all coming back to me," she continues singing.
"I am Celine Dion for the UFC," she says at the promo's end. "See you in the Octagon."
Watch Ariana Grande's "Celine Dion Sports Promo" from Saturday Night Live Season 50, Episode 3 above, and stream every episode on Peacock anytime.
